Tag: Safety

About Agricultural Lime in the Coop

Uses, Precautions, & General Information

In chicken coops, agricultural lime, also known as calcium carbonate or calcitic lime, is commonly used. It is typically sold in garden centers, feed stores and sometimes hardware stores. Agricultural lime is used for various purposes in chicken coops, but is it right for your coop needs? Hope this information helps you decide.

The Benefits of Agricultural Lime
Keeping the chicken coop smelling fresh is important, and lime plays a key role in this. Lime helps to get rid of bad smells by balancing out acidic substances and lowering the levels of ammonia in the chicken waste and bedding. This makes the environment nicer for both the chickens and the people taking care of them.
Disease Prevention: Lime has antimicrobial properties that can help reduce the risk of bacterial and fungal growth in the coop. By controlling microbial populations, it can contribute to the overall health and hygiene of the chicken coop.
Drying Agent: Lime can absorb moisture, which helps to keep the coop bedding dry. This is important for preventing the growth of mold and bacteria, as well as reducing the risk of respiratory issues in the chickens.
Pest Control: Lime can deter pests such as flies and mites, which are common nuisances in chicken coops. Its alkaline nature can make the environment less hospitable for these pests.
Precautions
When using lime in a chicken coop, it’s important to follow recommended guidelines for application to ensure the safety and well-being of your chickens. Lime is typically applied to the floor of the coop and always in moderate amounts. Overuse of lime can lead to excessively high pH levels, which may be harmful to the chickens.
It’s also crucial to follow recommended safety precautions, such as wearing protective gear like masks and gloves when handling lime, as it can be caustic to skin and eyes in its powdered form. Remember, good ventilation is always important to prevent the inhalation of lime dust.
Just a Little Reminder:
Always Be Safe Around Chickens
You should always wear a mask when cleaning the coop; it just makes good sense to avoid inhaling debris from a chicken coop. You can learn more about the importance of wearing a mask HERE.

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Never Use Diatomaceous Earth, Here’s Why

DE is Old School Practice, Today We Know Better

Using diatomaceous earth (DE) in your coop or in dust baths poses a threat to both you and your chickens, as it results in the continuous presence of dangerous irritant particles in the air. Diatomaceous earth (DE) serves no essential purpose, raises safety concerns, and proves ineffective for its claimed applications.

The primary concern with using DE is the fine dust that it creates when handled. When under a microscope, you can see that Diatomaceous Earth is fine and very sharp. Inhaling this dust is a lung and respiratory irritant, potentially leading to respiratory issues. I’m not just talking about this being a danger to your chickens, but to you as well. As you well know, there are always particles in the air when you are cleaning the coop, maybe from a windy day, or just from your birds scratching around looking for bugs. Once you lay down DE you are putting yourself and your birds at risk, even if you put shavings on top. If you’re wondering if food grade DE is safe, the answer is NO.
If you’re not concerned about lung and respiratory problems, the other issue with using DE is irritation to the skin and eyes, especially in the dry powder form.
So, if you’re going to use DE, I hope you don’t mind wearing a mask, gloves, and protective eyewear. And, if you don’t mind putting your chickens’ health at risk or wearing hazmat apparel when caring for your chickens, then go ahead and use DE… but you have been warned of the consequences.
Here’s What Another Chicken Keeper Says About DE:
The Cut & Dry Truth About Diatomaceous Earth By The Chicken Chick

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Salmonella Safety Practices for Backyard Chicken Keepers

Fact: People can get sick with Salmonella infections from touching backyard poultry, their feed, and the places where they live and roam.

Here’s What You Need to Know

Keeping chickens can be a healthy & rewarding hobby, but what we need to talk about is the proper management that will keep your family safe from the dangers of salmonella.
This isn’t talked about near enough and I feel too many chicken keepers are dismissing the fact that salmonella is found in bird droppings. If eggs are not handled properly, salmonella can be passed along to people. That’s the basic truth. But the facts are much broader than just safe egg handling, every chicken keeper should be well educated on proper housekeeping and coop management to safeguard against Salmonella.
Simple Rules for Good Chicken Housekeeping
Backyard poultry can carry Salmonella germs even if they look clean and well-kept after. After handling baby chicks, (especially children and people with weakened immune systems) should immediately wash their hands thoroughly.
There should be a clean space between your home and where your chickens roam. That means they must have their own space where people won’t be constantly exposed to their droppings.
Wear special shoes or boots when tending to your birds, and store them away from the designated clean space.
Never eat or drink where your chickens live or roam.
Keep your coop and where the chickens roam clean. Regular coop cleaning and fresh bedding should be at the top of your chore list.
Collect eggs daily and keep the nest box clean. Eggs should never lay in droppings.
Refrigerate your eggs, this slows the growth of germs.
Coop equipment such as water or feed containers should be cleaned outdoors only.
Chickens are not indoor pets and shouldn’t under any circumstances be allowed in your home. They aren’t to be cuddled and certainly not kissed.

Outbreaks of Salmonella Infections Linked to Backyard Poultry in 2020…

As of December 17, 2020, a total of 1,722 people infected with one of the outbreak strains of Salmonella were reported from all 50 states.
333 people (33% of those with information available) were hospitalized.
One death in Oklahoma was reported.
24% of ill people were children younger than 5 years of age.
Epidemiologic and laboratory evidence showed that contact with backyard poultry was the likely source of these outbreaks.
576 (66%) of the 876 ill people interviewed reported contact with chicks and ducklings.
People reported obtaining chicks and ducklings from several sources, including agricultural stores, websites, and hatcheries. Testing of backyard poultry and their environments (such as backyard coops) in Kentucky and Oregon found three of the outbreak strains.

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